TGIF

This was such a tiring tiring week I can't even even. 

We're doing migration after migration after migration of several systems because we're expected to vacate our old office by next week. By vacate I mean pull out all servers, shut down all PCs, and move it to the new office which doesn't have network connection yet. The plan is to route everything to one of our data centers in Singapore while waiting for the network to be installed in our new office - just a block away from the old one. Safe to say it's a busy time for the whole tech team.

I mean I'm not even the main guy for the whole thing, we're just one of the teams affected by the local network downtime. But because our robots are all hosted locally, we have to move them somewhere safer and more stable. Like a virtual machine hehehe.

The most exhausting part of this whole move is really the amount of coordination to be done. Talking to stakeholders, explaining things, filing requests to different teams, following up, looking for people to help me with my issues. Oh my goodness. Sure I can communicate, I'm fluent enough, I write good emails, but the rate at which my energy depletes after each send is extremely high I'm a dead battery so early in my shift, my half-life is halving ridiculously the more I interact with people. Helppp.

I just want to recharge. Thank God it's Friday.

Thank God. 

Thank God. 

I can't believe I mean that now. 

Thank God. 

[Review] My 35km PMS experience with Shell - Toyota Vios

We went to Shell for our car's 35k PMS. It's my first time to try at a gasoline station and here's how it went!

Why Shell?

My choices were really just Shell or Petron. I asked on Facebook and most of them said Shell, so Shell it is! Toyota isn't an option because it's too expensive and they make you wait an entire day for your car, it's ridiculous. Our last PMS was done at Patch Power but unfortunately they already closed down. :(

I was pretty excited to try Shell actually. I'm not car savvy, but our car is already 5 years old and I feel like it's a point where I need to pay more attention to it because I don't want to run into an accident and not know what to do? Hahaha wala lang I think it's about time I learn more about our car yun lang hahaha. Hey I still don't know how to change a tire haha.

The Shell we went to is at Dahlia, Fairview, Quezon City.

What we got and how much?

We got the oil change + PMS package for ₱4,999.00

Actually for 35K mileage you can do with just the oil change package because it already includes the oil filter, flushing liquid, labor, and free performance checkup. The price depends on the type of motor oil you want. It could range from ₱1.7k to ₱4.7.  But just to be sure we added the PMS bit because we don't know what we could be missing haha. Turns out the only difference is they added brake cleaning and adjusting hehe.

Oil change package:
    Fully synthetic motor oil (Shell Helix Ultra 4L) - ₱3,917.00
    1 Oil filter
    Labor
    Free performance checkup
    Flushing oil - ₱187.00
Additional:
    Brake cleaner - ₱295.00
    Labor (clean/adjust brakes) - ₱750.00
Less:
    Shell Go+ App discount - (₱150.00)*

Total: ₱4,999.00

*Download Shell Go+ App to either get points or redeem rewards and discounts. I chose to get a 150 discount. You may also use your SM Advantage Card to earn points.

What they did:

Here's a video I uploaded on Youtube covering the whole thing! We're allowed to watch at the service bay so I thought it'd be a good experience to record it to see what's up. 

In bullets:

• I drove the car into the service bay where they aligned the jacks they'd use to lift the car up. 
• The mechanic started by dusting the engine bay with compressed air.
• Then he poured flushing oil and started the car
• Car lifted a bit.
• Checked A/C filter. Still good so it was just cleaned with compressed air.
• Fluids checked. Still good.
• Car was raised higher.
• Mechanic proceed to flush the engine.
• Tires checked. You can request to have your tires rotated. Advise is every 10k. 
• Found a screw stuck in our front tire huhu
• Sanded and sprayed the rotor disc
• Break pads still good.
• Shocks still good.
• Put back the drain plug.
• Replaced oil filter.
• Put in motor oil.
• Started the engine. Sounds good.
• Checked the screw on the tire. Luckily it didn't go through, yey!
• Done!

What I liked

It was definitely more affordable than having it done at the casa, although I think ₱5k is still pretty pricey for a minor PMS but that's because we got a fully synthetic oil which costs ₱3.9k already. You can get your PMS for as low as ₱2k if you go for the conventional motor oil.

The entire service took barely an hour which is great, and I only had to wait 1 car for my turn. The lounge is cool and clean, as well as the ladies' CR. 

Everyone who assisted us was courteous and professional. I really love the treatment. I hope all Shells are consistent this way so we don't have to drive all the way to Fairview hehe

What I didn't like

Nothing much, I guess the lack of snacks and coffee is a bummer. No one offered eh!

What I learned

Oh man I learned a lot just by observing what the mechanic does. I learned that PMS is majorly just oil change and a couple of performance checks. I learned a couple of parts and how they look like. Drain plug, oil filter, flushing oil, cabin filter, engine flush, rotor disc, brake pads. Still can't change a tire though haha.

That's it! Hope this helps. Let me know your thoughts as well! :)

Oh shoot

Ok I actually found this sitting in my drafts and thought why the heck have I not finished telling this story? So here you go, the story of how I got into a digital ad with Condura last year!

So around first week of December someone reached out to me to shoot content for Condura. They must've found my Unboxing and first impressions video of Condura CNF-201i and thought I'd be a good cast for one of their campaigns. It could be a scam I thought, but the inquiry looked legit. I mean what could they possibly get from me? They even asked for my rate. So I replied with interest and sent in my rate. Two days later I'm on a Zoom meeting with the prod team where I was given pointers on what to say. I also gave a little virtual tour of our house so the director, Ms. Janina Manipol, could figure out how to shoot. It's getting real.

I didn't know what to expect, actually. It was the first time I received an inquiry as an ~influencer~. Sorry I don't really have much regard for the term haha. So yeah they gave out key questions and pointers, and also asked for wardrobe options. We scheduled the shoot morning of December 9. I remember not getting enough sleep.

And it shows pala no? My eyes, my hair, my entire face looks tired lol. Ang hirap pala itago nun no kahit mag-makeup ka. And speaking of make-up I didn't have any camera ready makeup with me, I remember decluttering them all cos it's no use this pandemic haha. I only have tinted sunscreen and pang kilay hehe. Sana may concealer ako huhu!

The technical crew came lugging in a lot of stuff, mostly shooting equipment and also a lot of food to supplement what's in our ref. The best thing? They left all the food they put in! Which is a lot. We had frozen meat, eggs, and vegetables the whole week. They also gave breakfast and lunch cos the shoot took so long, like 6 hours long. And my husband slept through all of it lol.

You can watch snippets of the shoot from my vlog here, it starts at 2:02 (I already marked it!)

It was so tiring, the whole thing. I thought it was going to be easy cos I already had the questions and answers in mind, but we had to repeat a lot of things, for safety, for clarity, and so on. During the shoot I realized I was focused more on the product than my own experience of it, and that's what they're looking for. It was a challenge having to redo my whole thinking because I wasn't prepared to be super open and spontaneous. I wasn't doing an infomercial, I was doing a testimonial video and a freaking ref tour haha.

But yeah, thank God we powered through and here comes the output.

No one told me it was for a digital ad, I just know it was gonna get featured on Condura's page, until one of my friends saw me on a Youtube ad! Hihi

I guess that's all! I just want to share the experience lol. It was my first time to appear on a digital ad and it was surreal! I'm not really comfortable being identified as a vlogger, let alone The Blahger but what the heck right? I only had 600 something subscribers that time so I definitely don't qualify as an "influencer" but I guess they're looking for real life customers and just happened to stumbled upon me who identifies as a vlogger hehe.

It's also my first time working with a production team. The coordination of it all is very impressive. I was being directed on Zoom by Ms. Janina who was super kind and encouraging, and the technical crew with me were both very helpful and supportive. Really professional, I love it!

Aaand that's it! :)

October 2020 draft

Okay I'm not really feeling happy today but let's try to force this list!

1. Done with our timekeeping system server upgrade. This was last week and I'm so glad I finally got it over with. Urgh.

2. Done developing the main functionality of this robot I was given two weeks to work with. I procrastinated so hard at this task I only started doing it the day before our follow up meeting. I was that confident I can do it. And I did. Client doesn't seem that impressed though. Turns out this robotic functionality is not the most critical part of their request, and that the other part is out of the scope of our team's capabilities. Falls under macro development. Still, I'm gonna try looking for solutions argh wish me luck. Hey where's the happy part in this again? Urgh.

3. I just ordered a webcam because I'm tired of using my phone or tablet for video calls.

4. We finally have a new ref. A small 2-door no-frost inverter ref that's the perfect size for our home. Been wanting to get a new ref ever since our old one (a single door super-hassle-semi-auto defrost ref) started showing signs of uhm, ageing? Basta it frosts too quickly and we have to defrost it every week na, sobrang hassle lol.

5.  Currently watching It's Okay to Not Be Okay on Netflix. Ang cute nya hehe

6. Getting more and more convinced to get into YL. Is that a happy thing? It's gastos eh. Still a bit skeptic about it I just wanna try it for aromatherapy plus the owl diffuser is so cute and parang less hassle gamitin kasi isa lang yung cover na tatanggalin mo haha. Dati I want the desert mist pero looking at reviews parang hassle pala and too big hahaha. So yeah we'll see.